GEORGE TOWN, Feb 16 — It is unacceptable for states to report high collections of zakat if there are still hardcore poor communities in the state, said Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.

He said zakat — or Islamic tithe mandated among Muslims — should fully benefit the hardcore poor and low income group.

"When I took over office more than a year ago, I told Federal Territories that whatever theory or explanations they gave, if there are still hardcore poor in Kuala Lumpur, I want the zakat to fully benefit them, aside from other initiatives by the government,” he said his keynote address at the Penang International Zakat Conference 2024 in Universiti Sains Malaysia here.

He said zakat should not be seen as a normal institution but as an important institution to build the strength of the ummah, or Muslim community.

He said this is the reason why good governance is important not only in managing the country but also in managing zakat.

"No matter how much the country accumulated with billions in zakat collection, poverty will not be resolved if there is no good governance,” he said.

He said every cent of the zakat collected must be used responsibly.

"Zakat must resolve the issue of hardcore poor in the best possible way,” he said.

He then raised the issue of meritocracy and how the hardcore poor and those in the low income group will not be able to compete with those from good schools and highly educated families.

"The tyranny of meritocracy is that 99.99 per cent of those that are selected in a meritocracy system are from good schools and educated families and this creates a wider gap between the low and high income groups,” he said.

To close the gap between the low and high income groups, he said zakat must also ensure that the low income group is given access to facilities and technological advances to be able to compete.

"In managing zakat, they must think of this to reduce the gap between the low and high income groups,” he said.

"Zakat is more than an economic and social agenda, it is an Islamic religious spiritual agenda,” he added.

Anwar said he had received reports from Kuala Lumpur, Selangor, Negeri Sembilan and Melaka that they had resolved the issue of poverty in their respective states by almost 100 per cent.

He said if it is true, then the zakat funds can be used for other purposes such as funding the weddings for young couples.

"I still have not received a report from Penang but poverty should have been eradicated in Penang as it has a low number of hardcore poor,” he said.

He gave Penang a week to submit a report on whether poverty is eradicated in the state.